Man arrested for assault, robbery near UWO

UWO students react to double stabbings that occurred over the weekend near the campus. (Oct. 26, 2014)
Noell Dickmann/Oshkosh Northwestern Media

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University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh officials are urging students to be cautious when walking at night in the campus area in the wake of multiple robberies and two stabbings in the past month.(Photo11: Oshkosh Northwestern Media, Joe Sienkiewicz / Oshkosh Northw)Buy Photo

Update: The Oshkosh Police Dept. on Tuesday morning said the man walking with the battery suspect on Sunday has been identified and is cooperating with the investigation. No charges are expected.

Detectives want to speak with three witnesses whom they believe spoke to the stabbing suspect between 10 and 11 p.m. on October 24.

Original story: Police arrested a 19-year-old Oshkosh man Sunday for robbery, battery and carrying a concealed weapon after an attempted robbery near the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

Police said the man was arrested after he and another man, who remains at large, assaulted two pedestrians in in the 800 block of McKinley Street at 9:15 p.m. Sunday.

The attack was the sixth in the neighborhood east of the UWO campus in a month, including an attempted robbery that resulted in the stabbing of two students Friday night. The man has been tied to an attack on Oct. 20, but not to any of the other assaults, Oshkosh Police Lt. Kevin Konrad said.

UWO Police Chief Joe LeMire said the arrest was possible, in part, because of an increased police presence in the area.

Police said the 19-year-old attacker ran at one of the victims and struck him without warning. The victim fled and found a University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Police officer nearby. That officer found the assailant running through the area and notified the Oshkosh Police Department, whose officers took the man into custody. The man was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon in addition to battery and robbery because he had a knife in his pocket.

Konrad said police are still trying to identify the second man, though he did not take part in the battery. The suspect is a white man, about 5 feet 11 inches tall with a thin build.

Konrad would not say if the man in custody is suspected of a role in a robbery Thursday evening in the 700 block of Wisconsin Street, in which the attacker brandished a weapon, or the attempted robbery and stabbing of two men near Lincoln Avenue and Wright Street on Friday. Both of those incidents remain under investigation, Konrad said.

"At this time we have not made any arrests in relation to the robbery on Thursday or the stabbings on Friday," he said. "But we are continuing to follow up on some leads and we're hoping that very soon we'll be able to resolve the other incidents as well."

Both students who were stabbed Friday had surgery and are expected to make full recoveries, Konrad said.

In all, six robberies have been reported to police in the area east of campus since Sept. 27.

LeMire encouraged students and residents in the neighborhood to walk in groups, keep to well-lit areas and avoid any strangers' attempts to start arguments or confrontations.

The UWO Police and Oshkosh Police have increased patrols in the area of the assaults and robberies and LeMire urged students to take advantage of the school's Safewalk program, which makes community service officers available to students who are leaving campus in the evening. The community service officers have conducted 280 safe walks since Sept. 1.

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UWO Police Chief Joe LeMire asked students and residents to take precautions when walking near campus. Oct. 27, 2014.

"Students come to school and they need to be able to move around freely to get to classes, get to the library, get to the places they need to go ... and we want them to be able to do that safely," LeMire said. "The way this person was handling themselves in committing the crime is troubling, so we really need to work with local authorities to get that solved, but it takes a whole community to do that."

Students on campus Monday had varying degrees of concern about their safety, but were taking the warnings to heart.

"It scares me quite a bit, cause last year there was just one creepy thing that happened and this year its been like six and within a month," said Brittany Blunt, a junior who lives off campus. "They've all been targeting males, but, I'm a woman, so it could easily target me."

Jakheel Jackson, a senior living on West Lincoln said he still feels safe walking alone, but he's still taking more precautions.

"Recently I am a little more cautious about my surroundings now," he said. "I got to look out for my back for things that might be out there."

Anyone with information about the recent robberies or any other incidents is asked to call the Oshkosh Police Department at (920) 236-5700 or to anonymously contact Winnebago Area Crime Stoppers at (920) 231-8477.